The Arrest Of Lev Parnas: Which Airport?

Lev Parnas, a Soviet-born American businessman, was arrested at Washington Dulles International Airport in October 2019. Parnas was arrested alongside his business partner Igor Fruman while attempting to leave the country with one-way tickets. The pair were charged with conspiring to violate the ban on foreign donations and contributions in connection with federal and state elections, as well as conspiring to make contributions in connection with federal elections in the names of others.

Lev Parnas was arrested at Washington Dulles International Airport

Lev Parnas, a Soviet-born American businessman and former associate of Rudy Giuliani, was arrested at Washington Dulles International Airport on October 9, 2019. Parnas was arrested along with Igor Fruman, David Correia, and Andrey Kukushkin. They were charged with a four-count indictment alleging that they conspired to violate the ban on foreign donations and contributions in connection with federal and state elections.

Parnas and Fruman were also charged with conspiring to make contributions in connection with federal elections in the names of others and with making false statements to and falsifying records to obstruct the administration of a matter within the jurisdiction of the Federal Election Commission (FEC). They were arrested while holding one-way tickets to exit the country.

The indictment sketched a complex scheme to violate campaign finance laws, and Parnas was later found guilty on six counts related to illegal donations to the 2020 campaign of Donald Trump. He was sentenced to 20 months in prison, three years of supervised release, and $2,322,500 in restitution.

Parnas and Fruman began attending political fundraising events in connection with federal elections and making substantial contributions to candidates, joint fundraising committees, and independent expenditure committees. They sought to enhance their influence in political circles and gain access to politicians to advance their personal financial interests and the political interests of at least one Ukrainian government official.

To conceal the true source of the funds, Parnas and Fruman deliberately made contributions in the name of Global Energy Producers (GEP), a purported liquefied natural gas import-export business they had incorporated. They falsely reported that donations came from GEP funds when, in truth, the donations came from a private lending transaction between Fruman and third parties.

Parnas was arrested with Igor Fruman

Lev Parnas, a Soviet-born American businessman, and Igor Fruman, an energy company executive, were arrested together at Washington Dulles International Airport on the evening of October 9, 2019. The pair were arrested by two plainclothes officers as they boarded a Lufthansa Airlines flight to Frankfurt, Germany, with a final destination of Vienna, Austria.

Parnas and Fruman were charged with a four-count indictment, including conspiring to violate the ban on foreign donations and contributions in connection with federal and state elections. They were also charged with making false statements and falsifying records to obstruct the administration of a matter within the jurisdiction of the Federal Election Commission (FEC).

The indictment alleged that Parnas and Fruman conspired to direct funds from a foreign government to US politicians to influence US-Ukraine relations. They were accused of working to advance their personal financial interests and the political interests of Ukrainian government officials. To gain influence with politicians, the pair made substantial contributions to candidates, joint fundraising committees, and independent expenditure committees, including a $325,000 contribution to an independent expenditure committee.

Parnas and Fruman deliberately made false reports about the true donor of the funds, stating that the contributions came from Global Energy Producers (GEP), a purported liquefied natural gas import-export business they had incorporated. However, the donations actually came from a private lending transaction between Fruman and third parties and were used to conceal the true source of the contributions.

They were charged with violating campaign finance laws

Lev Parnas, a Soviet-born American businessman, was charged with violating campaign finance laws. Parnas was arrested at Washington Dulles International Airport on the evening of October 9, 2019, along with Igor Fruman, David Correia, and Andrey Kukushkin. They were charged with a four-count indictment, including conspiring to violate the ban on foreign donations and contributions in connection with federal and state elections.

Parnas and Fruman were involved in a complex scheme to violate campaign finance laws, which included making substantial contributions to candidates, joint fundraising committees, and independent expenditure committees. They sought to advance their personal financial interests and the political interests of at least one Ukrainian government official. To gain access to exclusive political events and influence politicians, Parnas and Fruman made a $325,000 contribution to an independent expenditure committee and a $15,000 contribution to a second committee in May 2018.

They deliberately reported that the contributions came from Global Energy Producers (GEP), a purported liquefied natural gas import-export business they had incorporated. However, the donations actually came from a private lending transaction between Fruman and third parties and never passed through a GEP account. By doing so, Parnas and Fruman intended to evade federal reporting requirements and conceal the true source of the contributions, even from creditors.

In addition, Parnas and Fruman were charged with conspiring to make contributions in connection with federal elections in the names of others and making false statements to the Federal Elections Commission. They were also involved in a campaign to oust Ambassador Yovanovitch from her post and have her recalled. Parnas was found guilty in a U.S. Federal Court on six counts related to illegal donations to the 2020 campaign of Donald Trump and was sentenced to 20 months in prison and three years of supervised release.

They were trying to leave the country

Lev Parnas, a Soviet-born American businessman and former associate of Rudy Giuliani, was arrested at Washington Dulles International Airport. Parnas and his business partner, Igor Fruman, were arrested as they tried to leave the country while under federal indictment for violating campaign finance laws. They were found to be holding one-way tickets out of the country.

Parnas and Fruman were charged with a four-count indictment alleging that they conspired to violate the ban on foreign donations and contributions in connection with federal and state elections. They were also charged with making false statements and falsifying records to obstruct the administration of a matter within the jurisdiction of the Federal Election Commission (FEC).

In March 2018, Parnas and Fruman began attending political fundraising events and making substantial contributions to candidates, joint fundraising committees, and independent expenditure committees. They sought to enhance their influence in political circles and gain access to politicians to advance their personal financial interests and those of at least one Ukrainian government official.

To conceal the true source of their funds, Parnas and Fruman falsely reported that their contributions came from Global Energy Producers (GEP), a purported liquefied natural gas import-export business that they had incorporated. In truth, the donations came from a private lending transaction between Fruman and third parties and never passed through a GEP account.

Parnas and Fruman's actions were part of a complex scheme to violate campaign finance laws and create a false Biden-Ukraine conspiracy theory, which was connected to the Trump-Ukraine scandal. The case against them blurs the line between impeachment and a criminal investigation, as they were also involved in pressuring Ukraine to investigate Democrats.

Parnas was sentenced to 20 months in prison

Lev Parnas, an associate of Rudy Giuliani, was sentenced to 20 months in prison, three years of supervised release, and $2,322,500 in restitution on June 29, 2022. Parnas was convicted of six counts related to illegal campaign donations to the 2020 campaign of Donald Trump. The charges included conspiracy to make political contributions by a foreign national, solicitation, aiding and abetting the making of the same, conspiracy to make straw donations, wire fraud, and making false statements and falsifying records.

Parnas was arrested at Washington Dulles International Airport in October 2019, along with Igor Fruman. They were arrested on their way to board a Lufthansa Airlines flight to Frankfurt, Germany, with one-way tickets. Parnas and Fruman were charged with conspiring to violate the ban on foreign donations and contributions in connection with federal and state elections. They were also accused of conspiring to make contributions in connection with federal elections in the names of others and making false statements to the Federal Election Commission (FEC).

The investigation revealed that Parnas and Fruman had begun attending political fundraising events and making substantial contributions to gain influence with politicians. They made a $325,000 contribution to an independent expenditure committee and thousands of dollars in donations to other committees and candidates. Despite the requirement to disclose the true donor of the funds, they falsely reported that the contributions came from Global Energy Producers (GEP), a purported liquefied natural gas import-export business they had incorporated.

Parnas's sentence was announced by Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York. Parnas's crimes involved defrauding investors in his business, Fraud Guarantee, and using Russian money to influence American politics.

Frequently asked questions